Assighob



1.0. CADIEUX.

PUSH BUTTON SWITCH.

APPLICATION FILED DEc.21.I9IB.

1,303,634. Y Patented MaylS, 1919.

5 mm1/woz dll' Atti

d'USElPl CdlDIElUX, 0F CNNECTCUT, ASSXGNUM TU GONCTICUT TELEPHNE & ELECTRIC COMPANY, INC.,

POTIOM' 0F CONNECTICUT.

GIF MlElttllDllll, GNNECTJECUT, d COR- rusn-nu'rron siren.

incensi.

application tiled becember at, lele. Serial tio. adito.

To all whom t may concerti.'

Be it own that l, dosnrn U. Gaumen, a citizen oi the United States of America, residing at Meriden, Connecticut, have invent ed a new and useful Push-Button Switch, of which theiollowing is a specication.

'lhe present invention relates to what are commonly known as push buttons or push button'switches and the general objects ot the invention are to provide a switch ont this character which will be ot simple, inexpensive and easily assembled construction and which will be capable of withstanding the wear and usage to which such switches are ordinarily subjected.

Among the more specific objects of the in vention are to insure good contact at all times, to prevent injury to the contact-making parts and to improve the'button strucy ture.

Accordingly the invention resides in the combination with the push button, of binding posts disposed -beneath and arranged to serve as abutments limiting the movement of the push button, said binding posts serving also as supports for contact springs which are engaged by a contact-making head carried by the button. 'lhese binding posts furthermore, in the preferred construction, are utilized as the means for tastenin the parts together and are formed as gua s tor protectin 'the Contact springs.

@ther eatures and details ot construction will a pear as the specication proceeds.

ln t e accompanying drawin l have illustrated the invention embodied 1n a practical and reterred form, but with the understanding that modihcations and changes may .be made without departure from the true spirit and scope ot the invention.

ln said drawing llligure l, is a central sectional view ot the switch. with the button standing in the c nel extended position.

Fig. 2, is a similar view showing the button in the depressedcontact-making position..

Fig. 3,'is another sectional view tahen on a `plane at right angles to the plane ot Fi l and substantially on the plane of the hns 3-3 Oli that g1;

llig.' Il, `is a slightly medido lol ofthe invention.

"llhe base ot te switch is shown as a cupn epecilncatlon or Letters Patent.

. companion washer 8.

artial sectional view ot a Patented llday idg timidi.

shaped member 5 havin an inwardly entending dange t at the ower end thereof. Seated on this liange within the hollow base is a washer 7 ot suitable insulating material and engaging the flange at the outside is a These insulating washers are secured together with the base tlange clamped therebe` tween by means ot the binding posts 9 which are projected up through the washers into the cavity within the hollow base and are there riveted over as indicated at l0 so as to permanently secure these parts rmly together.

lhe button structure consists in the disclosure of a button disk il ot pearl or like material havin a beveled daring rim l2? said disk being iheld in a cupped disk i3 having the upstanding rim thereof beveled or spun over the daring rim ot the button dish as indicated at le so as to hrrnly hold the button dish thereto. This beveled securing rim preferably does not extend up as titil far as the tace of the button disk and therev tore is not in `tact noticeably observable at the tace of the button. Attached to the back of the button cup 13 is a screw stud as indicated at l5 which has a sliding bearing in a bore provided in the insulating washers between the oppositely disposed binding posts.

"lhe button is yieldingly supporte -by a dition to serving as a pair ot switch contacts also serve as abutments limiting the inwar thrust of the button. 'lhe contact thus established is sudlcient tor ordinary purposes and so long as the button worlrs straight up and down and the binding posts are both ot the same height. llo insure perfect contact at all times however, and irrespective ot the engagement of the button with the bind posts l provide in my invention9 a pair ot contact springs 17 disposed lotudinally of the binding posts and secured thereto as by riveting le., said springs havin inwardly bowed portions below the head o the screw stud so as to be engaged by said head upon of the binding posts the depressionof the button (Fig. 2). contact is thus doubly insured, first by engagement of this contact-making head with the inwardly bowed portions of the springs, and secondly by engagement of the button itself with the tops of the binding posts. he limiting of button movement by the binding posts, it will be seen, prevents injurious strain on the contact springs which. can be made of relatively light resilient materiaL f y Injury to the contact springs is further guarded against by turning the lower ends inward as indicated at 19, the inner beveled surfaces of these bowed lower ends of the binding posts further serving as inclined supports with which the lower ends of the springs slidingly engage.

The device, it will be seen, is readily assembled by simply placing the insulating washers at opposite sides of the flange of the cupped base, inserting the binding posts therethrough and then heading over the upper ends of the posts to rivet the parts together. The binding posts, -it may be mentioned,are provided with suitable shoulders such as indicated at 20 for engagement with the lower face of the lower insulating washer. TheseA shoulders determine the distance the binding posts will project up into the hollow base. The double set of contact- .making elements insure good electrical contact at all times. This electrical contact is improved by bowing out the upper ends of the contact springs, as indicated at 21 for engagement by the under surface of the button. This structure provides a set of spring contacts for engagement directly by the button in addition to the set of spring contacts engaged by the button-carried element 15.

The construction illustrated in Fig. 4 is the saine as that previously described except t at the lower face of the button is in this case made of insulating material so that the circuit is completed entirely by means of the engagement of the contact head of the button with the spring contacts of the binding posts. i

1. A push button switch comprising a cup-shaped base, insulating washers inside and outside said base, binding posts pro- Jecting up through said Washers into the cupshaped base and fastening said washers together with the base clamped therebetween and a yielding push button working in the cup-shaped base and arranged to be depressed into engagementwith the extended osts.

upper ends of the binding p 2. A push button switch, comprising a cup-shaped base, contacts withinsaid base, a

yielding and adapted to make engagement with said contacts,

the base and a push button and havin with the contacts within the-base and positioned to be engaged by the head on the stem of the push button.

4f. A push button switch, comprising in combination-with rigid switch contacts and a button for engaging the same, yielding switch contacts connected with said rigi contacts and a contact making element carried by said button for engagement with said yieldin switch contacts.

5. A pus button switch comprising, a push button, binding posts having switch -terminal portions disposed beneath the push button 1n position to be engaged thereby, yielding contacts carried by said binding osts and a member carried by said push utton for engagement with said yielding contacts.

6. A push button switch comprising a cup-shaped base, contacts within said base, a yielding push button working in the base and adapted to make engagement with said contacts, a second pair of contacts carried by the base and a member carried by the push button and arranged to engage said second pair of contacts in the movement of the push button.

In combination, a push button, oppositely disposed binding posts beneath said their lower ends dier, s ring contacts ing posts and rected toward each ot carried by said opposed having contact portions bowed toward each her and bearing at their lower ends on the inwardly directed portions of the binding posts and a contact-making head carried by the push button for engagement with said inwardly bowed portions of the spring contacts.

8. In combination, a push button, oppositely disposed binding posts beneath said push button, spring contacts carried by said opposed binding posts and having yielding spring portions exposed at the upper ends of the binding posts for engagement by the push button, said spring conhaving inwardly bowed contact portions adjacent their lower ends and a con- In combination, a base, a yielding push .button mounted in said base, binding posts mounted in the base beneath ioo v for engagement with said contact springs.

10. 1n combination, a base, a yielding push button mounted in said base, binding posts mounted in the base having contact portions disposed beneath the push button and having extended ends bowed inwardly toward each other to forni a guard structure, contact springs on the binding posts behind said guard portions of the binding posts and a contact-making element carried by the push button for engagement with said contact springs.,

11. In a push button switch, a cup-shaped base having an internally anged lower end, an insulating washer inside said base resting on said flange7 an insulating washer outside the base and bearing on the flange, binding posts extended through said insulating washers and fastening said washers together with the tlange of the base therebetweem a push button working in the cupshaped base and Contact portions on the binding posts for engagement by said push button.

12. ln a push button switch, a cup-shaped base having an internally flanged lower end, an insulating washer inside said base rest ing on said iange, an insulating washer outside the base and bearing on the ange, binding posts extended through said insu lating washer and fastening said washers together with the iange of the base therebetween, a push button working in the cupshaped base and provided with a stem slid- .ingly guided through the insulating washers, a head on the outer exposed end of said stem and spring contacts carried by the binding posts in position Jfor engagement by said head.

13. A. combination like that described in claim 12 wherein, the binding posts project up into the cup-shaped base and provide abutments limiting the thrust of the push button to prevent injurious pressure of the head on the spring contacts described.

14. In a push button switch, a push button having a metallic under face, binding posts disposed beneath said button, spring contacts carried by said binding posts and having their upper edges free for engagement by the under face of the button, said spring contacts having yielding contact or tions below the upper edges of the bin ing posts and a contact-making head carried by the button for engaging said last mentioned spring contact portions.

JOSEPH' O. CADIEUX. 

